Panther wrestlers pin Cody Broncs 65-16

Linebaugh, Horton impress in wins

PHS sophomore Emma Karhu begins to break away from Cody’s Matthew Stroble in the 113-pound weight class Tuesday evening in Cody. Karhu went on to win the match by pin in the final seconds, bringing the final score to 65-16.

Coming off a road win against Lander on Friday — and looking to avenge a loss to the Broncs last season — the Powell High School wrestling team was determined to make a good showing in Cody on Tuesday.

The Panthers did that and then some at Cody High School, winning 65-16 against a Broncs squad that was without a full complement of healthy wrestlers.

“We had some good matches,” said PHS head coach Nate Urbach. “They have a bunch of kids that are sick and hurt; I think we had five forfeits. But the matches we did have were good. As a team, we wrestled well. I was happy to see that.”

The Cody dual is always a fun one for the two head coaches, as Cody’s Trev Wood and Urbach share more than just a love of the sport: They’re brothers-in-law.

“This is always a good rivalry” and the family connection “always adds a little twist to it,” Urbach said. “We’re naturally competitive. You always want to beat your brother-in-law, and the same is true with him.”

After a forfeit at 106 pounds, Powell’s Emma Karhu came from behind in the third round of the 113-pound match to pin Cody’s Matthew Stroble with less than four seconds on the clock.

Forfeits were given by Cody in the 120 and 126-pound classes. At 132 pounds, Powell’s Corey Linebaugh pinned Brady Deming in the second round.

Cameron Schmidt lost a tough match to Cody’s Josh Jones, 10-0 , while teammate Bo Dearcorn was pinned by Cody’s Charlie Beaudrie, the No. 1 wrestler in 3A and a defending state champion.

“Charlie [Beaudrie]’s a heck of a wrestler,” Urbach said. “That’s a really good rivalry there.”

At 195 pounds, Karson Lamb was pinned by Cody’s Nate Hunt.

Carson Olsen continued to impress at 220 pounds, pinning Cody’s Jeff Williams with just six seconds left in the match.

“Carson Olsen has been getting better and better every week,” Urbach said. “It’s really fun to watch the kid, because he doesn’t have a lot of experience. He came out as a junior, and I can see him starting to like the sport.”

Urbach said he’s been impressed with Olsen’s work ethic and his willingness to commit fully to a sport that isn’t for everyone.

“Wrestling is a tough sport to just pick up,” he said. “It’s a little different than, say, basketball. Basketball takes a ton of skill too, but wrestling is a grind. It’s tough; you have to watch what you eat, you’re working out after practice really hard. Some kids don’t like it. But Carson [Olsen] is starting to like it and appreciate it, and that’s always fun to see.”

The Panthers are back on their home mat Friday, welcoming in Buffalo, Cody and Worland for a varsity quad. The Panthers won’t square off against Cody this time around, but Urbach expects his team’s hands to be full with the other two teams making the trip.

“We have Buffalo and Worland coming up, and Buffalo has some tough kids, we have to be ready for them,” he said. “Worland beat us last year, too, and they have some tough kids as well.”

At Friday’s dual at Lander — which featured a number of forfeits — the Panthers won 56-19 over the Tigers. Full results were not available at press time Wednesday.